George leads Pacers' rally over newly named Pelicans

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New Orleans, LA (SportsNetwork.com) - Paul George scored 19 of his 32 points
in the second half and the Indiana Pacers raced past the new-name New Orleans
Pelicans 95-90 after a big fourth quarter on Wednesday night.

Indiana outscored New Orleans 36-24 in the fourth behind eight points apiece
from George and George Hill, who finished with 19 overall.

Lance Stephenson had 16 points and David West scored 12 for the Pacers, who
also needed a big fourth quarter Tuesday night at home to down the Orlando
Magic in their season opener.

"We had to overcome some adversity," said Pacers coach Frank Vogel. "This is
what our team has to do to win games on the road and take the next step."

The Pelicans -- nee Hornets -- started their season with a new name and
renovated arena and got 25 points from Eric Gordon and 24 points, seven
rebounds and five assists from Jrue Holiday in his New Orleans debut.

Former No. 1 pick Anthony Davis had 20 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks
for the Pelicans, who led by as many as 16.

"We're going to be fine as long as we continue to defend and push the ball,"
said Davis.

The Pacers hadn't led since 3-2 when Stephenson hit a wide-open three to give
them a 79-77 advantage with 4 1/2 minutes left to cap an 8-1 surge.

They didn't take the lead for good until West's free throws with 66 seconds on
the clock. Hill followed with a 3 from up top to make it four-point game.

Gordon's 3 with 4.6 seconds left cut a six-point deficit to three for the
Pelicans but George hit a pair of free throws to seal the win for Indiana.

Only Davis played more minutes for New Orleans than Holiday, who was acquired
from Philadelphia for No. 6 pick Nerlens Noel and a 2014 first-rounder. Tyreke
Evans, the former NBA Rookie of the Year, had four points in 22 minutes off
the bench in his Pelicans debut.

"We didn't give it away. They took the game," said Pelicans coach Monty
Williams. "I just didn't think we had an understanding of the moment in the
fourth quarter."

Gordon had 11 points in the first quarter, including four in a row to give the
Pelicans a nine-point lead. They took a 24-14 lead into the second quarter.

Davis threw down a one-handed alley-oop dunk on the left side off a pass from
Brian Roberts to cap a 13-3 run that gave New Orleans a 16-point lead at 37-21
midway through the second quarter.

Indiana cut it to 10 points, but Gordon and Holiday hit back-to-back threes
near the end of the second quarter and the Pelicans carried a 50-36 lead into
halftime.

Jason Smith's layup to start the third quarter pushed New Orleans' lead to 16
but Hill had a 3-pointer and scored five during a 10-0 Indiana run to trim the
difference to six.

George had 11 points during the third, including a triple that got the Pacers
as close as four. The Pelicans pushed it to seven, going into the fourth with
a 66-59 lead.

Game Notes

George and Hill both had four threes ... The Pacers have won five straight in
the series ... The Pelicans said forward Ryan Anderson will miss 1-3 weeks
with a chip fracture in the second toe on his right foot ... The Pacers will
play Cleveland at home on Saturday ... The Pelicans are at Orlando on Friday.

190roots

236 If the Pacers will do as good as they were last year... The Pelicans will have a breakout year.